Høglund to Automate Eight New Chemical Tankers

Tanker owners Ektank and Utkilen will kit their new chemical tankers out with Høglund automation systems in order enhance to the vessels’ long-term performance and reliability.

The four 18600 dwt tankers for Ektank and the four 9900 dwt tankers for Utkilen will be fitted with integrated automation systems that will link together systems such as power management, cargo control, and alarms.

“These developments point to a new level of awareness of the importance of integrated automation in the chemical tanker segment,”said Børge Nogva, Høglund CEO.

“Historically, automation systems have been a low-priority item, and as such, often including several different components from various manufacturers that are linked, but not integrated, even if they have the same logo.”

He pointed out that this new level of integration allows the owners an enhanced level of access to data from the automated systems for optimisation purposes, which would otherwise be costly and difficult to extract.

“By prioritising integrated automation, Ektank and Utkilen will benefit from increased reliability, better visibility into the data within their systems, and a single point of contact for upgrades and service,” added Mr Nogva.

“Automation systems are the nervous systems of modern vessels – and as the fleet becomes smarter, it’s becoming ever more costly to ignore them.”

This year, Høglund systems have also been used to equip brand new vessel types such as the LNG bunkering vessel Cardissa, and the wind farm support vessel Windea la Cour.